


The Princess' Stalker

by Nakira Taisho (nakirataisho)



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Mari has a stalker, and the stalker is a perv, partial AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-02
Updated: 2017-10-06
Packaged: 2018-12-10 07:39:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11687079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nakirataisho/pseuds/Nakira%20Taisho
Summary: Marinette has to deal with a stalker, while Adrien figures out his feelings for her.





	1. Summer and Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien makes efforts to spend more time with Marinette, as Chat Noir.

It was probably halfway through the summer when he realized it. It might have been because she finally stopped stammering around him. Or it was the first time his father had asked for her to contribute to his mid-summer line and she'd managed to ask him to help with the prototypes. Whatever the cause, he looked at her differently. Maybe he had even started seeing her differently after the scene Chloe had made in the department store during the reveal of the Ladybug and Chat Noir pyjamas, Marinette's first real design job.

Adrien had gained some experience with people and while he still loved Ladybug, he was realizing it was almost like when he was hanging out with Nino. And it was just as well, because he was starting to think that Ladybug didn't really care much for Chat Noir. When he was around Marinette, after he'd really gotten to know her at least, he found himself almost star-struck. And it wasn't just because by the first summer he'd known her, she was almost famous as _Jagged Stone's_ album and accessory designer.

When he mentioned it to Nino, without mentioning her name of course, his friend had laughed and slapped his back, telling him he 'had it bad'. And at his confusion, Nino explained the phrase to him. Of course, Nino also encouraged him to tell the girl how he felt, but Adrien was terrified to do that. He'd looked online and found more than enough stories of friendships being ruined because one of the two friends confessed their love for the other. He had so few real friendships that he didn't want to risk losing that, so he was okay with just being friends with her.

However, he had a hard time keeping his composure around her. Even with his friends, he had a box to stay in. So he couldn't say some of the things that came to mind even in normal situations. The first, and last, time he'd cracked a joke around the others, they stared at him like he'd grown extra heads, so he'd decided not to try that again.

And Marinette seemed to be okay with Chat Noir (considering she'd been so considerate of him when designing the pyjamas), so he started going to her house as Chat Noir. The first night he came knocking on the trap door on her roof, Marinette stared blankly at him for a good five minutes. He frowned.

"Is…there something on my face?" he asked at last.

"Why are you here, Chat Noir?" she sighed. "Am I in danger or something?"

"No…I just wanted to see you," he replied. "Can…I come in?" She nodded dumbly and got out of the way. He dropped into her room and took a good look around. Of course he noticed the pictures on the walls, but he noticed several cat pillows and plush animals. "You like cats?"

"Well…yes," she answered, sitting at her desk. "So…why did you want to see _me_ of all people?"

"I can't want to hang out with the most talented and beautiful girl in Paris?" he asked lightly, sitting on her chaise. She blushed brightly and he tried making conversation with her.

* * *

He got into a routine very quickly. When he would finish whatever he had scheduled for the day, he would go to Marinette's home. Every time he got there, no matter how late it was, she was waiting for him. One thing that bothered him, and he wasn't sure why, was that she was always in her regular clothes.

But after a week of this routine, he came to her room to find her in a set of black and green pyjamas. He blinked and looked her over. Sure enough, they were the _Chat Noir_ pyjamas she'd designed for the department store the previous fall. She smiled at him.

"What?" she asked lightly. She stood and went to grab a cat shaped pillow off her chaise. He'd bought a set and framed them in his closet, but he hadn't seen them on anyone, and he would have expected her to wear the Ladybug set.

"Those…those are the pyjamas you designed for the department store…," he said lamely.

"These are the prototypes," she said, proudly. "I hand dyed and set the designs the day after you gave me your signature. You seem surprised that I'd be wearing something I made…"

"I…I thought you'd prefer the Ladybug set you made…," he said lamely.

"Why?"

"Because…well…you're friends with her, aren't you?"

"I'm friends with you, too," she said lightly as she sat back down in her desk chair. He smiled a little at that. "So, besides patrols…what do you do all day?"

"You're trying to flesh out my secret identity again," he noted. She grinned.

"Of course I am," she said cheekily. "You carry yourself like a model sometimes. Are you a model?"

"It's probably because of the charity ads that Ladybug and I do," he tried.

* * *

By the end of the first few weeks, he realized that the 'Chat Noir' pyjamas seemed to be her favourite set. And after they were fully into the routine, Marinette would sneak downstairs to get a late night snack for the both of them. She made him laugh, and he found that while it seemed his puns annoyed her when they were poorly timed, she actually enjoyed them when he nailed it. And on the last day of summer, he almost forgot that he had school the next morning.

"Chaton, it's getting _really_ late," Marinette noted, looking at her phone. "I have school in the morning."

"Oh right…," he sighed. "It's the last day of summer, isn't it?"

"Yeah…and I'd rather not be late…especially not with as much school as I miss usually…," she trailed off. He nearly asked about that, but _Chat Noir_ wouldn't have known that she missed almost as much school as he did, for reasons unknown.

"Really? I thought you would be a model student," he joked. "Didn't you say that you've been the class representative for the past two years?"

"Yes, I was…luckily this is my last year, so I don't have to worry about it after graduation…but I…I have a really overactive bladder…and there's not much we can do about it…," she said, and it sounded like a lame excuse.

"Right…," he sighed. "Well, I'll let you get some sleep, Sweetpea."

"Good night, Chaton…," she said with a smile, blushing lightly. He smiled and left her home. When he got home, he dropped the transformation and got ready for bed.

"Eventually she's gonna figure you out…," Plagg laughed as he brushed his teeth and got into his pyjamas. "And why do you still wear those when you're not the king of Ladybug fans anymore?"

"I'll cross that bridge when I get to it," he sighed, referring to Plagg's first statement.

"And the pyjamas?"

"Marinette designed them," he said lightly, heading to bed and hoping that things could just go on like this for a while longer.

* * *

The next day when Adrien got to school, he greeted Alya and Nino. The pair were holding hands and he couldn't help but smile. He wondered if he should just tell Marinette the truth, about how he felt at least. Maybe he'd get lucky and it would go well. He was too afraid to see.

"So, since we're in a new year, we were thinking of changing seats," Alya started.

"You guys just want to be able to play footsie during class…," he joked. The two exchanged a look. "What?"

"We were gonna sit in the front," Nino sighed. "Unless you wanna stay in the front row and we sit together on the second row…"

"I was joking anyways…the second row is fine with me…," he tried to laugh it off, realizing he'd stepped out of his 'box'. The response wasn't as jarring as it had been before, but the fact that they both were staring blankly at him made him want to shuffle his feet or hide in a locker.

"Right…well…let's go," Alya sighed after another moment of silence.  Adrien nodded and the three of them headed for their new classroom. Nino and Alya sat in the front row together and Adrien sat behind Nino. Marinette came into the room and stared blankly at the new seating situation.

"Um…you guys gonna be okay sitting beside each other?" she asked after a second.

"Yeah," Alya assured her. "Less distracting if we're next to each other instead of in different rows."

"Okay then…," Marinette sighed, sitting beside Adrien. "So long as you two don't get in trouble for playing footsie up there…," she joked. Adrien smiled a little at that while Alya and Nino exchanged a look. Marinette frowned a little. "What?"

"That's what Adrien tried to say we wanted to do…," Nino said as other members of the class trickled in and found their seats. He noticed that nearly everyone had been in their class the previous year, including Chloe and Sabrina. To his surprise, the two sat on opposite sides of the room, and rather than sitting where she could be the centre of attention, Chloe sat closer to the back row.

"That's weird…," he sighed.

"Agreed…," Marinette muttered. "Can't say I'm surprised though…considering how their friendship's been since grade school…"

Adrien sighed a little and their teacher came into the room. After making a couple of adjustments to the seating arrangements, she introduced herself and called roll. Morning classes went normally, but when they came back from lunch, Marinette looked a little freaked out. He frowned when she sat beside him.

"You okay, Marinette?" he asked gently.

"I don't know…it felt like someone was watching me while I was leaving and coming back…," she sighed.

"It could have just been a fan…," he tried. "I have that problem all the time…"

"Right…because I'm _so_ famous that I'd have fans…," she muttered.

"Marinette, you're well known, at least," he sighed. "I mean, how many of Jagged Stone's albums have you designed at this point? And he's constantly seen in the shades you made him…not to mention the pyjamas and—"

"Thanks, Adrien," she sighed, cutting him off. "But I don't think it was a normal 'fan'…we'll see though…"

He sighed a little and shook his head. He was used to the followers and gushing fans, but he realized that Marinette wouldn't know how to handle it. Plus it wasn't unusual for stalkers to crop up. He'd been lucky enough to not have to deal with that, but it was probably because of his parents sheltering him.

* * *

She had, of course, confided in Chat Noir her worries when he came to her that night. He'd encouraged her, though he was really concerned. He'd never seen her that freaked out. That was the last time she mentioned it to him, though he brought it up a few times.

One day, he was the first on the scene to take care of an akuma. He patiently fought the villain while keeping an eye out for Ladybug. Rather than spots, he saw Marinette run into the chaos carrying a metal trash can lid and he started to go after her. Then, he noticed someone chasing her. He frowned and got in the guy's way as Marinette got into an alley. He glared at the boy before going back to the fight. Ladybug arrived a moment later, seeming winded.

"Milady, are you all right?" he asked her. She nodded breathlessly.

"I'm fine, Chat Noir. Sorry to keep you waiting," she said lightly. "I…had some trouble finding a spot to transform." He frowned, but didn't say anything. He knew how hard it could be sometimes to get away from witnesses and transform. He did wonder what had made it so much harder for her this time.

"Well, you're here now, so let's get this taken care of," he tried. She nodded and swung her yoyo.

"So what's his power?" she asked, smiling a little. He explained the situation to her and as they fought, his mind wandered to Marinette.

Clearly the situation with the guy following her had escalated if she'd run right into danger with a trash can lid for a shield to get away from him. He decided to ask her about it after they finished with the Akuma.

* * *

After all was said and done, Chat bumped fists with Ladybug and turned to leave. He paused and turned back to his partner.

"Are you sure you're okay, Ladybug?" he asked her.

"I'm fine," she assured him. "You seemed distracted during the fight, are _you_ okay?"

"Yeah…I just saw…," he shook his head.

"What?"

"You know Marinette, right?" he sighed. She nodded.

"What about her?"

"Just before you flew in, she ran right into the middle of everything…carrying a trash can lid."

"Why would she do that?" she asked, almost nervously.

"She was trying to get away from someone, I think…," he sighed. Both of their miraculouses started beeping and he checked his ring. "Crap! Gotta get going…"

"Yeah…our identities must remain secret," she sighed. "See you next time, Chaton." She flung her yoyo and flew off.

He went home and landed in his room just in time to change back. Plagg fell onto the couch, whining about how hungry he was. Adrien rolled his eyes and went to the kitchen to get himself a sandwich and some cheese for Plagg. After they'd both eaten, he transformed and went to Marinette's. He knocked on the trap door, but she didn't answer. He opened the door and looked into her room.

There wasn't any sign of her, but listening, he could hear water going. And then he heard singing. He smiled and listened closely. Sure enough, Marinette was singing in the shower. He recognized the song as 'Stand My Ground' by Within Temptation, and it surprised him a little. He hadn't pegged her for a symphonic rock type.

He sat back, careful to avoid having a view into her room, and waited for her to finish. Before he knew it, she was coming onto the roof in her pyjamas. He heard her laugh a little and he realized that he'd been doing a very cat-like thing and 'bathing himself'. He scrambled to sit normally, rubbing the back of his head.

"I didn't keep you waiting long, did I Chaton?" Marinette laughed.

"Not really…but you have a good singing voice," he said, smiling a little.

"Oh…you heard that?" she mumbled, blushing.

"Yeah…feline hearing," he explained. "But…are you okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"You ran right into danger earlier. Why didn't you tell me it was getting that bad?"

"Because I thought he was just a rabid fan…"

"Obviously, he's not, Marinette…you should go to the cops. Before it gets worse," he sighed. She shifted a little and his stomach dropped. "What happened?"

"…I think…I think he's called twice…," she mumbled.

"You _really_ need to go to the police," he gasped.

"They won't do anything…the number was blocked, and…he didn't _say_ anything…just some creepy mouth-breathing."

"I'm serious, Sweetpea…I can do even less than the police…and I can't be there all the time to get rid of him…"

"I know…and I'm sorry for worrying you, Chaton…," she sighed, sitting on a chair in front of him.

" _You_ don't have to apologize…just…promise me you'll go to the police with this…"

"Okay…I will," she said firmly. He nodded and stood. "Going home already?"

"Yeah…I've got a busy day tomorrow," he laughed. "Good night, Sweetpea," he told her with a bow before he leapt from the roof and headed home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hit me up on tumblr [@sorcerymuses](http://sorcerymuses.tumblr.com)


	2. Taste of Fame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette gets a new routine and a 'rabid fan'...

His visits started halfway through the summer. At first, Marinette wasn't sure how to deal with Chat Noir's attempt at friendship. Her summer had been busier than usual, despite less frequent akuma attacks during the summer. Jagged Stone had commissioned a new wardrobe from her the moment school let out, on top of a new album cover. Then, just as she was finishing that project, the department store managers had contacted her about a summer line. In the middle of working on that project, Gabriel Agreste had called requesting a couple of pieces to feature in _his_ summer line as a chance to really get her name out there.

And alongside all of this, she had lessons with Master Fu. There were times when she felt useless as Ladybug, mostly when she was forced into close combat, where her yoyo wasn't as useful, so, she was learning a style of Kung Fu. She was also learning more about the Miraculouses and her own Chinese heritage. It was taking a while, but she was steadily learning Chinese as well. The best part of her lessons was magic. She still couldn't apply the spells in combat, because she would mess up the chants or get interrupted, so she was working on a way to translate the chants into characters or hand signals.

When she made time between working on her budding design career, Ladybug duties, and summer homework, she spent as much time as possible with her friends. She did notice that Adrien was a bit more reserved around her than usual, but she assumed it was more than likely to do with image or something only really famous people had to worry about. She figured she'd have to start being more careful than ever with her own face becoming a regular on magazine covers, and then she'd understand why Adrien acted the way he did even with friends.

One evening, after going on a patrol with Chat Noir and dealing with two different photo shoots (one as Ladybug and the other as Marinette) Marinette went home and got out her sketchbook. She started working on a few ideas for her contribution to the Gabriel line when she heard a knock on the roof access. Only one person would be on her roof rather than using the front door like a normal person. She checked her Ladybug phone to see that there were no crime alerts. So, figuring he might know something she didn't, Marinette went to let Chat Noir into the room.

He was sitting on the roof, patiently waiting. She blinked in surprise at him. There was no air of urgency around him, or even a real reason as far as she knew for him to be there. She said nothing to him, and he said nothing to her. She just couldn't figure out why he was there.

"Is…there something on my face?" he asked after several minutes of staring. His voice snapped her out of her silent worrying.

"Why are you here, Chat Noir?" she asked rather than answering his question. "Am I in danger or something?"

"No…I just wanted to see you," he replied, startling her. Unless he knew she was Ladybug, which she figured was next to impossible, why would he want to see _her_? "Can…I come in?" he asked when she made no response. She nodded dumbly, still trying to process what was happening. She moved out of the way and went back to her desk to work. Chat dropped into the room and looked around. "You like cats?"

"Well…yes," she answered, sitting down to get back to work. "So…why did you want to see _me_ of all people?" she asked as she picked up her pencil and started drawing again.

"I can't want to hang out with the most talented and beautiful girl in Paris?" he asked lightly and she blushed brightly. She knew he was a charmer from experience as Ladybug, but this was probably one of his better 'pick-up lines'. Then, he awkwardly tried to make conversation with her and she obliged him.

* * *

They got into a routine easily. Marinette realized after the second night that it would be a normal thing, so she would go straight home and wait for him after finishing whatever she'd had scheduled. Some days took longer for him to get there because of patrols, and she figured out quickly how to beat him to her house when they shared patrols or had to deal with an evening akuma. It took her a week to get the hang of it enough that she had time to change into her pyjamas before he arrived.

The first night she'd managed to change clothes before he arrived, Chat blinked in surprise and looked her over. She blushed a little, wondering for a moment what he thought about her wearing the _Chat Noir_ pyjamas she'd made. He dropped into her room and she grabbed a cat shaped pillow off her chaise before he could assume his usual position there.

"What?" she asked lightly. He was still staring at her in either shock or awe, she couldn't tell which.

"Those…those are the pyjamas you designed for the department store…," he said lamely after a beat. She smiled.

"These are the prototypes," she told him, proud of her work. "I hand dyed and set the designs the day after you gave me your signature." She paused a second. "You seem surprised that I'd be wearing something I made…"

"I…I thought you'd prefer the Ladybug set you made…," he sighed.

"Why?" she laughed a little. She wore spots enough without wearing the themed pyjamas.

"Because…well…you're friends with her, aren't you?"

"I'm friends with you, too," she said lightly, sitting in her desk chair. Chat smiled a little and she grinned. "So, besides patrols…what do you do all day?" she asked him playfully.

"You're trying to flesh out my secret identity again," he noted. She grinned at the little game she'd started.

"Of course I am," she told him, cheeky. "You carry yourself like a model sometimes. Are you a model?" She didn't _really_ want to know his identity, but it was the only way she could find to get him flustered. And she liked when he got flustered, fishing for answers and excuses while blushing and shifting his eyes.

"It's probably because of the charity ads that Ladybug and I do," he tried, and his cat ears actually twitched a little.

* * *

After three weeks of Chat Noir's visits, Marinette started slipping downstairs if they stayed up a certain amount of time to get a snack for the both of them. She tried to get a different leftover pastry every night, but usually all she could find were cookies. She found that she loved Chat's laugh as much as his puns annoyed her when they were on the job. Sometimes his puns were spot on and she couldn't help but laugh. His visits helped ease her stress over everything she had to deal with.

Before she knew it, summer was over and it was the last day before school started back up. She'd spent the day at the school with their new teacher, doing her duties as class representative and discussing the needs of her classmates. She was glad to find out that she had mostly the same classmates for their third year of Lycée as she had the previous years. And after not seeing Chloe all summer (the girl had probably been sent to another round of 'bitch camp' or worse by her father) she wasn't looking forward to being in the same class with her again. Chloe had probably been bottling up a summer's worth of insults and personal attacks and it was probably going to come out the moment the blonde saw Marinette.

Of course, when Chat came over, she nearly forgot all about all of that. Even with talking about school starting back up and how she'd signed up for some more specialized courses to prepare for university. She'd tried to get him to talk about his classes, since she figured he was about the same age as she was, but he'd gotten good at dodging her questions.

"Chaton," she started when she noticed that it was nearly midnight. "It's getting _really_ late. I have school in the morning…"

"Oh right…," he sighed. "It's the last day of summer, isn't it?" She nodded a little.

"Yeah…and I'd rather not be late…," she sighed. "Especially not with as much school as I miss usually…," she added absently.

"Really?" he asked and she realized that she'd slipped a little. "I thought you would be a model student," he joked. "Didn't you say you've been class representative for the past two years?"

"Yes, I was…luckily this is my last year, so I don't have to worry about it after graduation…," she laughed. "But I…have a really overactive bladder…and there's not much we can do about it…," she used her usual excuse for having to leave class early.

"Right…," he sighed. "Well, I'll let you get some sleep, Sweetpea."

"Good night, Chaton…," she told him, smiling. She was sure she was also blushing, because of the nickname. Chat smiled and went to the roof. When he was gone, Tikki flew out of hiding.

"You know…I think he likes you," Tikki laughed.

"Of course he does…we're friends," she sighed, cleaning up the cookies.

"As more than a friend, Marinette," the kwami groaned.

"Don't be silly, Tikki…I'm not stupid, I know he's in love with Ladybug."

"Honestly…"

* * *

The next morning, Marinette woke up late and quickly got ready for school. She put her hair in a bun and picked out a new outfit, a pink petal skirt and a floral blouse that she'd made for her summer line. She went downstairs and ate breakfast before grabbing her backpack and heading to school. When she got to the classroom, she noticed that Alya and Nino were sitting together on the front row and Adrien had taken up Alya's previous seat behind Nino.

"Um…you guys gonna be okay sitting beside each other?" she asked after a moment.

"Yeah," Alya said confidently. "Less distracting if we're next to each other instead of in different rows."

"Okay then…," she sighed, sitting beside Adrien. "So long as you two don't get in trouble for playing footsie up there…," she joked. Her friends exchanged a look and she frowned. "What?"

"That's what Adrien tried to say we wanted to do…," Nino said as other members of the class trickled in and found their seats. To her surprise, when Chloe and Sabrina arrived, they sat on opposite sides of the room from each other, and Chloe sat as far from the centre of attention as she could get.

"That's weird…," Adrien noted quietly.

"Agreed…," she muttered. "Can't say I'm surprised though…considering how their friendship's been since grade school…"

She noticed Adrien sigh a little just as the teacher came into the room. She made a couple of adjustments to the seating arrangements, introduced herself, and called roll. Morning classes went normally as could be, but when they left for lunch, Marinette noticed that Tikki was gone.

"Tikki!" she hissed.

"I'm here, just keep going…there's someone following us…," Tikki's voice said from near her ear. She glanced over, but couldn't see Tikki. She frowned and continued home. After she got lunch and was in her room, Tikki reappeared.

"You can turn invisible?"

"Sometimes…"

"And there was someone following us?" she sighed. "It felt like I was being watched but…"

"There was definitely someone following," Tikki sighed.

"Probably just a fan…I _have_ been having to sort out fan mail lately…," she rationalized. It still worried her. She shook it off and ate her lunch before heading back to school. On the way, it felt like she was being watched again and looking into her purse, Tikki nodded a little. She swallowed a bit and went to her classroom. She sat down.

"You okay, Marinette?" Adrien asked her softly.

"I don't know…it felt like someone was watching me while I was leaving and coming back…," she sighed, guessing he'd picked up on her nerves.

"It could have just been a fan…," he tried. "I have that problem all the time…"

"Right…because I'm _so_ famous that I'd have fans…," she muttered. The occasional fan-letter didn't qualify as fame to her.

"Marinette, you're well known, at least," he reminded her. "I mean, how many of Jagged Stone's albums have you designed at this point? And he's constantly seen in the shades you made him...not to mention the pyjamas and—"

"Thanks, Adrien," she sighed, cutting him off. "But I don't think it was a normal 'fan'…we'll see though…" She really hoped it was just a hard-core fan or someone with an innocent crush on her.

* * *

When school let out, it happened again, and she was lucky that when her crime alert went off, she was home doing homework. Her gut told her to transform in a corner away from her window, so she did so. It was a petty criminal, so she let the cops do their job, but she stuck around to make sure the criminal or his victims wouldn't be akumatized before she headed home. She dropped her transformation in her room just as a knock came at her roof. She swore under her breath, hoping Chat hadn't seen _Ladybug_ go into her room just then.

She let him in and if he'd seen her, he didn't lead on that he had. She confided in him her worries about the person watching her. The fact that Tikki had seen someone following them had her on edge and more than a little freaked out. She never brought it up herself again, not wanting to put extra worries on her partner. Of course, _he_ asked about it, and she tried to convince him that it was just her imagination. He didn't believe her, and he told her that she was a terrible liar.

Then, he started calling her. It only happened a couple of times, and after she answered the phone, he wouldn't call again, but the fact that he didn't say anything was more than creepy. One day, about a month into it, her crime alert notified her that there was trouble. Tikki reminded her that they were being followed and she tried to find a place to transform. She came to the square and saw Chat fighting an akuma. She grabbed a metal trash can lid.

"What are you planning?" Tikki asked softly by her ear. She shook her head and put a protection spell on the object. She held it like a shield and ran straight across the square through the chaos. She leapt over a fence into a garden when she was across. "That was crazy, Marinette. But we've lost him…," Tikki sighed.

Marinette nodded and transformed. She didn't even pause to catch her breath before she made her way to the scene, going around to avoid anyone connecting where she'd disappeared and Ladybug had appeared. She landed beside Chat Noir and finally had to try and catch her breath.

"Milady, are you all right?" Chat asked her. She nodded.

"I'm fine, Chat Noir. Sorry to keep you waiting," she tried to sound light, as if she hadn't just run across the fight with nothing but a trash can lid for a shield. "I…had some trouble finding a spot to transform." She noticed him frown, but he didn't say anything to her. It wasn't unusual for one or the other of them to be late to a fight because of witnesses, so she hoped he'd drop it.

"Well, you're here now, so let's get this taken care of," he said, probably trying to cheer her up. She nodded and swung her yoyo.

"So what's his power?" she asked, smiling a little to reassure him. He explained the situation and they launched into the fight. She noticed that he seemed distracted and she realized that he'd probably spotted her crazy attempt at shaking her follower.

* * *

When they defeated the villain and Ladybug fixed everything, she bumped fists with her partner like always and she started to leave. She wanted to get home and shower.

"Are you sure you're okay, Ladybug?" he asked her before they parted ways.

"I'm fine," she tried to sound confident. "You seemed distracted during the fight, are _you_ okay?" she asked to get the subject away from her entrance.

"Yeah…I just saw…," he trailed off and shook his head.

"What?"

"You know Marinette, right?" he asked. She nodded in response. One of her best laid excuses was that Ladybug and Marinette were friends. Fortunately, she'd never been questioned about the two personas never being in the same place.

"What about her?" she tried not to sound nervous.

"Just before you flew in, she ran right into the middle of everything…carrying a trash can lid."

"Why would she do that?"

"She was trying to get away from someone, I think…," he sighed. Both of their miraculouses started beeping and she grimaced. "Crap! Gotta get going…"

"Yeah…our identities must remain secret," she sighed, glad for the conversation to be over. "See you next time, Chaton." She left the scene and headed home.

She barely managed to land in her room before she lost her transformation. She went downstairs to grab a plate of cookies for Tikki before she grabbed her phone and went to the bathroom. She set her phone to play some of her Within Temptation playlist before she got ready to shower. Marinette started singing along to the music.

"Chat Noir's on the roof…," Tikki told her. "And you forgot your pyjamas." She groaned and finished her shower.

She wrapped up in a towel and went into her room. As she got to her dresser, she dropped her towel and gasped. She quickly covered up and grabbed her pyjamas. Marinette went to the bathroom to get dressed, hoping that Chat hadn't seen her naked. When she went to the roof, he was sitting near the rail, licking himself like an actual cat. She cleared her throat and he scrambled to sit up normally, rubbing the back of his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, this is the same events of the previous chapter. That's the set up here: odd numbered chapters are in Adrien's POV and even numbered chapters are pretty much Marinette's side of the previous chapter.  
> Hit me up on tumblr [@sorcerymuses](http://sorcerymuses.tumblr.com)


	3. Rubbing Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien Agreste-ively helps with the stalker

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for nude images mentioned.

The next day right when classes let out for lunch, Adrien noticed Marinette fleeing from the locker room. He ran after her, but she was already home. Alya and Nino were right behind him, but they decided they should check on her later. If he had his way, he would have ignored that Alya was Marinette's best friend and told her not to bother since she couldn't seem to understand that Marinette wasn't overreacting on the rare occasion that she'd brought up her stalker. But then again, Alya didn't understand what was going on in Marinette's life since she'd started making it into magazines.

After lunch, she didn't come back to school and it took everything in his power to stay in the classroom when he realized that things had escalated and she was too freaked out to come back to school. He spent the afternoon fingering both of his phones, hoping that she would actually call either him or Chat to help her. After classes, he rushed to the bakery, barely taking the time to get his things from his locker.

"Wait up!" Alya called, running after him. He didn't slow down. "Nino had a gig or he'd be coming too," she sighed when she caught up at the bakery door. "But seriously, I'm her best friend."

"Yeah, her best friend who kept insisting that this guy is just a 'rabid fan' and that Marinette was overreacting," he snapped, pushing the door open. "You were live blogging the attack yesterday. Didn't you notice her run into danger to get away from him?" Alya's eyes went wide and he guessed she hadn't noticed. "Yeah…that happened."

"I guess I was focused on the fight…," Alya said lamely. He shook his head and went into the bakery. Fortunately, there weren't any customers and Sabine Cheng looked at them with pure relief in her eyes.

"She locked herself in her room and hasn't come out…," she sighed.

"Marinette came running in here like the devil was on her heels," Tom added. Adrien frowned and rushed upstairs to Marinette's room. He knocked frantically on her door.

"Marinette?" he called. He could have sworn he heard her vaguely mumbling 'Chat' and he assumed she'd been asleep. He knocked a little louder. "Marinette, it's Adrien. Let me in, please!" He heard her roll out of her bed and she opened the door after a moment. He could tell she'd been crying. He went into her room and he noticed her phone had been thrown into a corner hard enough that the device was in two pieces. "What happened? What did he do this time?"

"He…left a note in my locker…," she said slowly as Alya came in. He glanced at Alya to see her eyes go wide. Marinette went to her desk and picked up the note. She handed it to him and he looked it over.

At first glance, it looked handwritten, but he noticed as he read it that the letters were too consistent, and the page didn't have any sign that it had been written on at all. It was _typed_. Otherwise, the note seemed harmless enough at first, but the more of it he read, the creepier it seemed. And then, he unfolded it completely to find a photo of Marinette attached to the page. His eyes went wide as he looked at the photo. It had obviously been taken through her window.

He started shaking with rage. Alya asked something, but Adrien didn't catch it. All he could think of was trying to find out _who_ was doing this to Marinette and getting them arrested. He had to convince her to go to the police. He vaguely heard Marinette calling his name and he realized he'd all but crumpled the note into a ball.

"Sorry…," he sighed, straightening the page and putting it back on her desk. "We should—" a car horn cut him off and he flinched. "Crap…photo-shoot…"

"If you have to—"

"No, I don't. Father can get over it since it wasn't _for_ anything," he assured them, pulling his phone out. He opened his messenger, knowing the Gorilla wouldn't be happy about a phone call. _Something came up_ , he typed. _Can't go to the shoot_. He hit send and didn't have to wait more than a moment before he got a reply.

 _He's not gonna be happy_ , was the message. He sighed and replied with a shrugging emoji.

"Adrien, you don't have to stay if you had plans…," Marinette sighed.

"No," he said firmly. "You're my friend and you need support right now, more than my father needs more random photos of me. He really only schedules so many shoots to give the photographers gigs…and he pays them whether I show up or not," he added, thinking of all the times photo-shoots had been interrupted or completely missed because of his duties as Chat Noir. His phone started ringing and he grimaced.

"Your father?" Alya guessed. He nodded and answered the call.

"Adrien, what happened? Are you all right?" his father asked before he could say 'hello'. "Do I need to call the police? Or the hospital?" For once, he was glad for his father's paranoia.

" _I'm_ fine," he assured his father before the man had a figurative heart attack. "But…the police would be nice. I'm gonna put you on speaker, Father." He did just that.

"What happened?" Gabriel asked after a second.

"Marinette has a stalker," he said plainly.

"I'm assuming you're at Marinette's right now?"

"Yes, sir," Marinette said softly, glaring a little at Adrien. He gave her an unapologetic look. "This guy has been following me since the start of the school year…then two weeks ago, he started calling me."

"Has he left any voicemails?"

"No…and until today if I answered the phone he would stop calling for the day…"

"But today?" Adrien asked her.

"Today…he kept calling until I threw my phone across the room and…I think my phone's probably broken…"

"Your phone is in two separate pieces," he pointed out.

"Did he say anything?" Gabriel sighed, and Adrien could almost hear him roll his eyes.

"No, but…he played a recording of me face timing with Alya…," she groaned.

* * *

After dealing with the police and helping to soundproof and protect Marinette's room (at his father's expense) from her stalkers spy gear, Adrien collapsed onto his bed. The police hadn't done _anything_ helpful. And he couldn't do anything even as Chat Noir. All because they didn't even know what the guy looked like. He calmed down and transformed to go check on Marinette. He had a feeling she was still freaked out, despite sending him and Alya off with a smile on her face. He went to her roof and knocked on the door.

Marinette greeted him with a fierce hug and he had to carefully pry her off to get into the room. He shut the door behind himself and went to sit on her chaise, feigning surprise at the curtains all over the room. Marinette sat beside him and leaned on him. He put a comforting arm around her.

"What happened, Sweetpea?" he asked her softly. She told him how her day had been and he tightened his arm around her as she started to cry. She must have been holding back for his and Alya's sakes while they were with her. It made him glad that she was comfortable enough that she could let it out when he was Chat Noir.

"We went to the police…and they didn't do anything," she finished. "They just told me to 'hang in there' and 'document everything'…I'm pretty sure if I hadn't pushed it, Adrien at least would still be here…"

 _Technically I_ am _still here_ , he thought. "He sounds like a great friend…but what about Alya?"

"She…came around, but this whole time you and Adrien have been the only ones who didn't say I was overreacting…," she sighed. "I…almost told her to leave…but…she's still my best friend…this just wasn't something she could understand I think…" She laughed a little. "It took all of my self-control not to call you earlier…before I broke my phone at least…"

"You could have called," he told her. It would have caused a stir at school, but he would have gone straight to her, and he could have played it off as an emergency phone or something.

"You have better things to do than worry about me…I'm sure you were busy this afternoon…," she argued.

"I always have time for you," he assured her. "No matter what I'm doing without the mask…" He kissed her hair gently. "Do you want me to stay until you get to sleep? You have school tomorrow, right?"

"Thank you…," she sighed. "But I'll be fine. I have a new phone…and I was able to transfer all of my numbers to it…if I need you I'll call." He nodded and came close to actually kissing her.

"And I'll be here faster than you can blink," he promised, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips. He'd settle for kissing her hand. "Be safe, milady." He kissed her hand before leaving and going home. He dropped his transformation and got to work on his homework, keeping both of his phones handy.

* * *

He noticed that Marinette seemed determined to keep her friends from worrying about her. Even though the notes kept coming and she had to change her phone number twice in an attempt to keep the phone calls at bay. After nearly three weeks of it, she skipped the afternoon classes again. This time, his 'hero phone' went off about halfway through the first lecture.

"Adrien, I'm surprised at you…," the teacher sighed as he pulled the black and green device from his bag to check it. The call was from Marinette.

"It's an emergency, Ma'am," he argued, packing up his things. "I have to go."

"Is it Marinette?" she guessed. He nodded. All of the teachers knew about her situation and were trying to help figure out who the stalker was. "Go ahead then."

"Thank you," he sighed before hurrying out of the classroom and to his locker. He put his bags away and ran to the bathroom to transform. Fortunately there wasn't anyone in there. He left the school out a window and went straight to Marinette's roof. She let him in and hugged him just as tightly as she had when the notes started. He put his arms around her.

"I'm sorry…," she murmured into his chest.

"You don't need to apologize," he assured her. "What happened? Another note?" She nodded a little and he sighed heavily, tightening his arms a little. Clearly she was either at the end of her rope or the note was worse than usual. "I'm sorry…"

"For what? _You're_ not the one sending them…"

"I'm sorry I can't do anything more than this to help you…," he sighed. "What did he say this time?"

"I can't…"

"That bad…?" She nodded a little. "You don't have to talk about it, then…"

"Thank you, Chat…," she whispered. He wasn't sure how long they stayed like that, holding each other while she cried into him, but a phone ringing startled them both. Marinette jumped away from him as if he was suddenly on fire and she pulled out a phone that he knew wasn't her regular phone.

"You…got a new phone again?" he tried.

"What? No, this is…," she trailed off, fishing for an answer. His first assumption was that it was a pager or something for her family.

"I think I understand," he sighed. He heard a scream just then. "Crap…duty calls…"

"Right…thank you for staying so long…," she sighed as he headed back to the roof.

"Anything for you," he said before he left and went to the scene. Ladybug arrived a minute later and he smiled at her. This was likely one of the first times in the past month or so that she'd arrived at the same time as him. And if he thought about it, Ladybug's trouble finding a place to transform was almost consistent with Marinette's stalker problem.

* * *

When all was said and done, Chat bumped fists with Ladybug. She turned to him before they parted ways.

"Thank you, Chat," she said lightly.

"For what?" he asked, surprised.

"Just…being there to help and being patient when I can't be there as quickly."

"It's part of the job, milady," he shrugged. "But…what brought this on?"

"I…no reason…I just thought you should know that I appreciate you," she said softly. "I don't know if you hear that enough."

"Well…thanks, Ladybug," he said with a smile. "I appreciate you, too…"

She smiled and left. He sighed and went home. When he got to his room, he dropped his transformation and sat on his bed.

* * *

The next day at school, Marinette seemed a little nervous around him. He wanted to assume that her stalker had done something else, but he couldn't help but wonder what the real reason was. Alya winked at him suddenly and he blinked. She must have told her about his exit from class the day before.

"Marinette…are you okay?" he asked her as they were released for lunch. She worried her lip but grabbed his hand and silently tugged him out of the school and to her home. "What's going on?" he gasped, trying to keep up with her. When they got to her room, she shut the door and silently pulled her phone out.

He swallowed nervously as she went into her recent calls and tapped a number. His second phone went off and he pulled it out. She ended the call and smiled a little at him. He smiled nervously.

"All this time…you were right there," she said quietly.

"Look…Marinette, I...I'm sorry I didn't tell you before…," he started, fishing for a reason besides the truth as to why he'd been hanging around.

"It's a secret identity for a reason," she told him. "My only question…well…I thought you were in love with _Ladybug_ …"

"I can't love both of you?" he asked lightly. She smiled brightly at that. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you how I feel, I…understand if you don't—" she cut him off with a kiss. His eyes went wide and he was sure that his heart stopped in that moment. Marinette pulled away from him as he started to recover from the shock, blushing.

"I'm sorry…I should have—" he cut her off with a kiss of his own, putting his arms around her to hold her close. She put her arms around him in return and when they broke apart, they were both out of breath. "Asked…," she murmured.

* * *

They returned to the school at the end of their lunch hour holding hands. Adrien walked with Marinette to her locker and when she opened it to get her things, a note fell out. He stooped to pick the note up. He saw the picture attached before he saw the text and his eyes went wide. Worse than the usual images of her in her pyjamas, it was a photo of her nude with her hair wrapped in a towel.

"Marinette…," he trailed off, handing her the note. She looked at it and blanched. "He sent a picture like this yesterday….didn't he?" She nodded a little and he put the note in her bag before hugging her. "I'm sorry…"

"For what?" she mumbled.

"You know what I'm apologizing for, Sweetpea…," he sighed. "I just wish I could do more to help…"

"It's not your responsibility…," she mumbled.

"I know. But I worry about you all the same," he reminded her, kissing her cheek. "I'm gonna go grab some stuff out of my locker." He headed for his locker and opened it up.

"That reveal was anti-climactic…," Plagg laughed as he pulled out his bag. "And seriously…you were afraid for nothing…"

"Shut up Plagg," he snapped. Just before he shut his locker, he noticed a note caught in the grate.

"Seriously?" he groaned and snatched the note. "Wow this guy's insane…," he sighed after reading it over. He shoved the note in his bag and went to the classroom.

"So how was lunch?" Alya laughed as he sat with Marinette. Marinette blushed brightly.

"I found a note in my locker," he sighed, choosing not to answer.

"What?" Marinette gasped.

"I kind of expected this…and he's too much of a coward to confront me…," he sighed.

"Yeah…the fencing champion with magical bad luck powers…," Marinette whispered at a level only he could hear. He smiled at her and touched her hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the pun was bad in the desc...but I had to.  
> Hit me up on tumblr [@sorcerymuses](http://sorcerymuses.tumblr.com)


	4. Notes of Panic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette's situation escalates with notes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for nude images mentioned.

The next day, Marinette went to her locker to put her bags away for lunch period. A note fell out of her locker and she frowned. She unfolded it and started to read it. At first it was a little romantic, but then it got creepy. At the bottom of the note was a picture of her in her pyjamas. She gasped sharply and ran as fast as she could manage out of the school and to her room.

She vaguely heard her parents calling after her, but she was in a panic. She locked her door with magic and threw herself on her chaise. She tried to calm down, but couldn't slow her thoughts enough to think. This guy wasn't just following her, he was _spying_ on her. She shot upright and ran to pull her curtains closed.

"Marinette…are you okay?" Tikki hedged, floating nearby.

"Did you see that note, Tikki?" she hissed. "What if he _knows I'm Ladybug_?!"

"Okay, calm down…," the kwami tried. "Since this started, you've been careful about your transformations."

"Look at the picture, Tikki!" she shouted, grabbing the note out of her bag and shoving the page in Tikki's face. "Look at the project behind me!"

"That's…"

"The piece I made for the Gabriel line during the summer! He's been—" she broke off as her phone started ringing. She grabbed her phone to check the caller ID.

"It's him…," Tikki hissed. Marinette rejected the call and put her phone on silent. It started vibrating almost immediately and she worried her lip. "Don't answer it."

"But he stops after I answer…," she argued. Tikki shook her head and sat on the phone, pushing the reject button.

"From that note, he's not going to stop…and answering his calls is…well just look at it! He thinks you're giving him a chance."

"But—" the phone went off again and Tikki rejected the call.

"We should go to the police. You did promise Chat Noir you'd do that."

"They won't _do anything_ , Tikki," she argued.

"Then I'll call Chat Noir and he can drag you to the police," the kwami threatened, unlocking the phone and going into the contact list.

"No! He has a life outside being a hero too…what if he's in the middle of something important?" she argued, snatching her phone from Tikki just as it went off again. "I'm going to answer it…"

"Marinette, don't!" She shook her head and answered the call.

"H-Hello?" she started. As usual, the only response was heavy breathing. She swallowed nervously. "P-Please leave me alone." She started to hang up, but she heard a clicking sound.

"Seriously, girl…you need to tell him," a recording of Alya laughed.

"He probably likes someone else by now…," her own voice argued.

"I wasn't talking about you!" She gasped. "I don't even know who you are!" She ended the call and threw it onto her desk. She started to calm down and went to her door to reassure her parents and eat lunch.

"Marinette…," Tikki started. She looked back to see that she had an incoming call. "I told you he wouldn't stop…"

"Oh my god…," she moaned. Tikki rejected the call and Marinette crossed the room. She tried to turn her phone off, but in the middle of getting to the screen, another call came. She rejected the call and tried again. The same thing happened and she whined.

"Call Chat Noir…," Tikki sighed. "Use your other phone."

"But then he'd find out who I am," she argued, attempting to get into her contacts. The calls kept coming in such quick succession that she finally threw her phone as hard as she could across the room. The device broke into two pieces and the screen shattered, but her room fell silent.

"Marinette…?" Tikki hedged. She shook her head and climbed into her bed, sobbing into her pillow.

* * *

Frantic knocking woke her. Marinette started to check her phone for the time, but then she remembered that she'd broken it. She heard a familiar voice call her name and for a moment, she could have sworn it was Chat.

"Chat…?" she mumbled vaguely, wondering why he'd be using the main door rather than the roof access. The knocking continued.

"Marinette, it's Adrien," the voice called. "Let me in, please!" She sat up and rolled out of bed, wondering why she'd hoped for her partner rather than her crush. She barely took the time to straighten her ponytail before unsealing her door and opening it. Adrien climbed into the room and looked around. "What happened? What did he do this time?"

"He…left a note in my locker…," she said slowly, moving to retrieve the note and show it to him. Alya came in behind Adrien as he read the note.

"Has he been calling you, too?" Alya asked her. Marinette nodded, watching Adrien. He started shaking and clenched the note, nearly crumpling it into a ball.

"Yeah…today was the worst though…," she sighed. "Adrien? Are you okay…?"

"Sorry…," he sighed, straightening the page. "We should—" a car horn cut him off. "Crap…photo-shoot…"

"If you have to—" she started, not wanting to cause trouble with his father.

"No, I don't," Adrien said, cutting her off. "Father can get over it since it wasn't _for_ anything," he sighed, pulling his phone out. He started texting someone and Marinette sighed.

"Adrien, you don't have to stay if you had plans…"

"No," he snapped. "You're my friend and you need support right now, more than my father needs more random photos of me. He really only schedules so many shoots to give the photographers gigs…and he pays them whether I show up or not," he sighed, shrugging. His phone went off and Marinette flinched.

"Your father?" Alya guessed. Adrien nodded and took the call.

* * *

It was late in the evening when Marinette all but forced Alya and Adrien to leave, faking a bright smile and assuring them she was fine. In part, she didn't want them to get too worried about her, but she also didn't want them to know that Chat Noir was visiting her. When they were gone, and she'd reassured her parents that she'd be okay for the night, she went back to her room and got into her pyjamas. A moment after she'd finished getting ready for bed, a knock came at the roof access.

She rushed to greet Chat Noir. She saw him and fell apart, hugging him tightly. He gently pulled her off of him and ducked into her room. He went to her chaise after shutting the door, looking around the room. The moment he sat down, Marinette sat beside him and leaned against him. He hugged an arm around her.

"What happened, Sweetpea?" he asked softly. In a rush, she told him about the day, breaking down into tears again. He held her a little tighter and she relaxed a bit.

"We went to the police…," she sighed. "And they didn't do anything. They just told me to 'hang in there' and 'document everything'…," she finished. "I'm pretty sure if I hadn't pushed it, Adrien at least would still be here…," she added with a smile.

"He sounds like a great friend…," he said gently. "But what about Alya?"

"She…came around, but this whole time you and Adrien have been the only ones who didn't say I was overreacting…," she sighed. "I…almost told her to leave…but…she's still my best friend…this just wasn't something she could understand I think…" She laughed a little. "It took all of my self-control not to call you earlier…before I broke my phone at least…," she told him, making light of the battle with her phone earlier.

"You could have called," he told her.

"You have better things to do than worry about me…I'm sure you were busy this afternoon…," she argued, not wanting to add that she tried, but couldn't call him.

"I always have time for you," he assured her. "No matter what I'm doing without the mask…" He kissed her hair gently. Marinette blushed a little. "Do you want me to stay until you get to sleep? You have school tomorrow, right?"

"Thank you…," she sighed. "But I'll be fine. I have a new phone…and I was able to transfer all of my numbers to it…if I need you I'll call." He nodded and she got the distinct feeling that he was close to kissing her.

"And I'll be here faster than you can blink," he promised, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips. "Be safe, milady." He kissed her hand before leaving. Marinette rubbed her hand a little and went to bed.

* * *

After the first note, Marinette tried to keep her friends from worrying about her despite the notes continuing and the calls getting worse. She had to change her number twice, and blocked every number he called with, but the calls kept coming. She almost got used to it after three weeks. Every note was saved, her phone records documented with the unknown numbers highlighted, and she heard from one of the photographers during a shoot as Ladybug that a bounty was out for even a picture of her stalker (which explained an increase in what she'd thought was paparazzi) that Gabriel Agreste had posted on the photography forums.

One day, she opened her locker to find one of the usual notes. She opened it warily and frowned as the typed note took a turn to the sexual. Then, she saw the photo: a shot of her half naked. Trembling, she folded the note and went home for lunch. Methodically, she wrote the date on a corner of the page and put it in the folder with the other notes.

Her phone went off once she sat at her desk and she checked the ID. The number was blocked, so she ignored the call and put the phone in airplane mode. She tried to eat and stay calm enough to go back to school, but an email alert came from her computer.

"No…," she moaned, checking the message. Sure enough, it was from a blocked address. She swallowed and opened it. The message was blank save for an attached video and a gif of her masturbating. She ran to the bathroom and threw up. When she came back, the message was closed out.

"Marinette….are you okay?" Tikki asked her when she dropped onto her chaise.

"No…I'm not okay…," she moaned. "I can guess what that video is…and—" she broke off, gagging a little at the thought of what he did with that video. "I'm…gonna lay down…"

"Okay…you know Alya and Adrien might come to check on you if you skip again…"

"I don't care…I can't be around people right now…," she sighed, crawling into bed. She tried to sleep, but couldn't manage it. She gave up after a bit, deciding she should take Chat up on his statement that he could make time for her, since she didn't want to call Alya or Adrien out of class.

She went to get her phone and went into her contacts before taking her phone off of airplane mode. Immediately, she called Chat Noir. Not surprisingly, he didn't answer, but barely a moment after she'd ended the call and put her phone back into airplane mode, a knock came at her roof. She rushed to greet him, hugging him tightly the moment he was inside. He put his arms around her and she relaxed a little.

"I'm sorry…," she mumbled.

"You don't need to apologize," he said gently. "What happened? Another note?" She nodded into his chest and his arms tightened. "I'm sorry…"

"For what?" she asked, pulling back to look up at him. " _You're_ not the one sending them…"

"I'm sorry I can't do anything more than this to help you…," he sighed. "What did he say this time?"

"I can't…," she sighed. She trusted Chat more than anyone, but she couldn't even think about the note and email without feeling nauseous.

"That bad…?" She nodded a little in reply. "You don't have to talk about it, then…"

"Thank you, Chat…," she whispered, letting herself cry into his chest. She didn't know how long they stood in the middle of her room, holding each other like that, but it felt right to Marinette.

A familiar ringtone startled her. The crime alert on her hero phone. She jumped away from a Chat to pull the device out, hiding the spots on the cover. An akuma was nearby, so they would hear screaming soon and Chat would leave.

"You…got a new phone again?"

"What? No, this is…," she trailed off, trying to think of an explanation.

"I think I understand," he sighed. A scream cut through the air. "Crap…duty calls…"

"Right…thank you for staying so long…," she sighed. Chat headed for the roof.

"Anything for you," he told her before heading to the scene. She smiled a little, wondering if he was unwittingly crushing on both of her personas. Tikki cleared her throat and she nodded, calling for her transformation.

* * *

When they finished with the Akuma, Ladybug bumped fists with her partner. They both still had time before losing their powers, so she turned to him.

"Thank you, Chat," she said lightly, knowing she didn't tell him often enough that he was appreciated.

"For what?" he asked, clearly surprised. The fight hadn't been difficult, or really risky.

"Just…being there to help and being patient when I can't be there as quickly."

"It's part of the job, milady," he told her, shrugging. "But…what brought this on?"

"I…no reason…I just thought you should know that I appreciate you," she said softly, wishing she could tell him just how much he was really doing for her. "I don't know if you hear that enough."

"Well…thanks, Ladybug," he said with a smile. "I appreciate you, too…"

She smiled and left. She got to her roof and spotted Alya biking towards her house from the scene of the attack. She got into her room and dropped her transformation. After a few minutes, a knock came at the door and Marinette braced herself before letting her friend in.

"Oh. My. God. You seriously called Adrien out of class?! Just how bad was the note this time?" Alya spoke rapidly. "Did he stay this whole time? OMG is he still here?"

"Slow down, Alya…," she sighed, hiding her shock that somehow _Adrien_ left the school when she called _Chat Noir_. "He…left a few minutes ago…"

"What happened?"

"Are you talking about the note or with him?"

"Both!" Marinette sighed and got the note, but she planned to keep the email to herself for now.

* * *

The next day at school, Marinette couldn't look at Adrien directly. _He_ was Chat Noir. All those nights hanging out in her room, talking about nothing and everything, it was her crush she'd confided in. The whole time she'd been crushing on her partner. And she was the idiot who fell in love with him twice.

She wanted to kick herself for not seeing it. The way he held himself, his chivalry, his stupid feather allergy, everything should have told her that she was always right beside him. She could only attribute her idiocy to only seeing parts of his personality at any given point in time. She should have caught on when she found out that both of the blond-haired green-eyed boys she knew were allergic to feathers of all things.

"Marinette…are you okay?" he asked her as they were released for lunch. She worried her lip but grabbed his hand and silently tugged him out of the school and to her home. "What's going on?" he gasped, trying to keep up with her. When they got to her room, she shut the door and silently pulled her phone out.

He swallowed nervously as she went into her recent calls and redialled Chat Noir's number. A phone went off and he pulled it out. She ended the call and smiled a little at him. He smiled nervously.

"All this time…you were right there," she said quietly.

"Look…Marinette, I…I'm sorry I didn't tell you before…," he started.

"It's a secret identity for a reason," she told him. "My only question…well…I thought you were in love with _Ladybug_ …"

"I can't love both of you?" he asked lightly. She smiled brightly at that. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you how I feel, I…understand if you don't—" she cut him off with a kiss on impulse. Marinette pulled away from him after a second, blushing.

"I'm sorry…I should have—" he cut her off with a kiss of his own, putting his arms around her to hold her close. She put her arms around him in return and when they broke apart, they were both out of breath. "Asked…," she finished.

* * *

They returned to the school at the end of their lunch hour holding hands. Adrien walked with Marinette to her locker and when she opened it to get her things, a note fell out. He stooped to pick the note up. His eyes went wide and his skin seemed to pale, and she could tell that it was another half-naked photo attached.

"Marinette…," he trailed off, handing her the note. She looked at it and blanched. It was a full on nude. "He sent a picture like this yesterday….didn't he?" She nodded a little and he put the note in her bag before hugging her. "I'm sorry…"

"For what?" she mumbled.

"You know what I'm apologizing for, Sweetpea…," he sighed. "I just wish I could do more to help…"

"It's not your responsibility…"

"I know. But I worry about you all the same," he reminded her, kissing her cheek. "I'm gonna go grab some stuff out of my locker." He headed for his locker and Marinette went to the classroom with her things.

"So how was lunch?" Alya laughed as he sat with Marinette. Marinette blushed brightly.

"I found a note in my locker," he sighed, choosing not to answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hit me up on tumblr [@sorcerymuses](http://sorcerymuses.tumblr.com)


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